Hello Everybody! I cannot believe that it is 39degrees at home! Wow! I cannot imagine that kind of cold and am certainly not prepared for the weather. I only packed one pair of khaki’s for Hong Kong. I guess I am going to have to buy a pair of pants for the plane ride- because I am going to be freezing. Can you believe three weeks from now I will be landing in BWI? I am so excited but also saddened to leave the relationships that I have made in Hong Kong.
The weather here is still in the high 80’s every day and rather humid. I have been wearing shorts and T shirts since the first day I arrived in September. The weather here has yet to change! However, some nights it get down to 75degrees or so and I am able to open my windows instead of using the AC unit which is nice. Living at Gold Coast has been wonderful. I am certainly thankful for living by the water- though it is very frustrating to know that I cannot just go down to the harbor and jump onto a boat! I miss being out on the water- especially in this weather!
This week has been tough as usual. My weeks seem to be progressively getting tougher; however, this week has been extra hard because I have been very homesick. There are moments where all is fine and dandy, and there are moments where I am holding back everything I have just to keep my cool. It makes the trip much nicer when I get to talk to the people I love and I certainly have been doing that. Thank you to everyone who has been emailing and Skyping me while I am here. It means a lot- thank you.
As for my classes…
Advertising Perspectives and Profiles (Monday/Wednesday at 4:00pm)
This class is coming to an end quite earlier then my professor intended. Due to the fact that there are only 5 students in my class, we are flying through the information and actually have reached the point in the class where we are “filling” space by adding on some assignments. My professor wrote the class syllabus for a class of about 20, so you can imagine how much quicker assignments pass with 5 students. My final exam review is on Monday October 31, which means that I will be taking my final the following Wednesday: November 2nd. I am very nervous because I did not do as well on my midterm as planned. However, since midterms my grade has gotten back up to an A, so I am not overly scared about this exam. My final presentation is coming up and I am sure I will do well (Morton Salt Girl). This past week we explored from 1975-2011: in 1975 the economy was in the worst shape since the Depression; the PC revolution!; Wireless remotes; 1981- the Pepsi Cola wars; Advertising -> persuade and preform; Disco and drugs!; Michael Jackson; Bill Cosby; Apple “Think Different”; “Where’s the beef?!”; Got Milk?; AIDS awareness; Ad’s were becoming more visually interesting; Hallmark; and sex and art! This class has been incredibly informative. I am really happy that I took it and learned a lot.
Creative Concepting (Tuesday/Thursday at 1:00)
This class has been very fun this past week. As I said about last week, my professor was using such repetitive assignments that most of us were losing interest- but he brought a great assignment for this week. This week we applied what is called: 180degree thinking. This means that we are to take the opposite approach a product in hope to spark a very unique idea. For example: If I was given the product Tylenol, I would write down mannerisms in which I saw in normal Tylenol ads and commercials. Then I would turn around and write an antonym for the words in which I jotted down. This is making the product incredibly interesting and certainly does allow for “different” and unique ideas.
Black and White Technique (Tuesday/Thursday 4pm)
This class is my worst enemy and the cause of all of my happiness this quarter. There is no room for all of the emotions in which I feel for this class. As I posted about a day ago, my teacher is introducing Large Format Photography, which is incredible. I am learning a lot but at a very past pace which is where I am struggling. My professor teaches us as if we have the ability to apply it immediately, with no room for mistakes. I guess that is the best way to approach 4x5 shooting because I am positive that I will make a mistake and hopefully learn from it! I was assigned to shoot 10 photographs for class on Tuesday. I shot on Saturday around Gold Coast because I am fearful of taking this camera elsewhere. I am sure my fear will wear off, but I did not want to waste time and money for my first shoot when I have never shot 4x5 before. I ended up shooting boats entering and leaving the harbor. I purposely did this to release a lot of the homesickness that I have been feeling. So regardless of what my teacher thinks of the photographs- it was a well needed shoot.
I am about to head to the gym and get a good run in to prep my mind for another mad week. Hope all is well at home. I miss and love you all. 3 weeks!


